So Many Choices, Such a Big Decision...Decision Made!

Today I opened my e-mails and found two acceptance letters to both Florida International University (which is very close to my home) and University of Central Florida (four hours away. After believing all this time that I was going to have to attend community college for two years, this is such a relief to me and yet such a mission. Now I have to choose between two excellent schools.

The decision isn't too hard to make once I looked at the pros and cons of attending each school.

Pros for Attending FIU:

• Do not have to pay extra to rent a room or stay in dorms
• Do not have to pay for food
• Staying near friends
• Great School with good credentials
• Offers programs I am interested in studying
• Can save up for study abroad programs
• Gives me time to save money to buy a car, camera equipment and for living expenses after college

Cons for Attending FIU:

• Close to home, staying with family, not leaving the nest, etc.
• In Miami; I hate Miami
• Not getting the full college experience

Pros for Attending UCF:

• Great School with great credentials
• Beautiful campus that I am in love with
• Has programs that I am interested in pursuing
• Living on my own, four hours away from home
• Not too expensive
• Starting early

Cons for Attending UCF:

• Must get a job up there.
• Costs more than FIU, especially because of living expenses.
• Must have a car for graduation which means waiting on a camera and the start of my photography career.
• Less friends in Orlando, loneliness can be a bitch.
• Cannot participate in Study Abroad Programs because of having to pay extra for living expenses

As you can see, the amount of cons for UCF is startling. Honestly, if money wasn't an issue, UCF would be the first and only choice. I absolutely love that school: its location, programs, campus life, dorms, food, entertainment, etc. However, going to UCF would mean taking out a student loan and not being able to go to study abroad and working my butt off on top of school, rather than having work be second fiddle to school. As a result, FIU seems to be the best option for me and if it turns out that by my junior year I can or want to transfer to UCF and I have the means to most of my credits, if not all of them would transfer to other state schools.

So I shall be attending Florida International University for approximately the next four years of my life, presumably attaining a BFA in Visual Arts with a track in Photography and minoring in Entrepeneurship.

Congratulations Danielle Fox. You have been accepted at Florida International University for the Fall Term 2010. FIU, here I come!